[RealFood=Reporter Yuk Seong-yeon] Japan Food Journal has revealed the winners of its 44th annual Food Hit Awards for 2025. Every year, a special selection committee highlights the standout food launches from the previous year and hands out the honors.
According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT)’s agri-food export information service (KATI), the awards are organized into the Food Hit Award, Excellence Hit Awards (four categories: general processed foods, alcohol, refrigerated/frozen foods, and snacks/bakery), and the Long Seller Award. This year the main Food Hit Award was not given; instead, 23 products earned Excellence Hit Awards and five were recognized as Long Sellers.
KATI’s analysis showed that Japanese consumers last year prioritized time savings and convenience, health and functional benefits, brand trust, and enjoyment when making purchase decisions.
With rice prices rising — and rice being a staple — demand grew for time-saving, convenient options and smaller-portion products that still feel satisfying. Ready-to-cook processed foods you can make in a skillet or microwave proved especially popular with busy dual-income households and older shoppers.
The Excellence Hit Award in beverages went to Pokka Sapporo Food & Beverage’s “Kireto Lemon Citric Acid” series. Registered with Japan’s Consumer Affairs Agency as functionally labeled foods, these products feature citric acid from lemon, which is claimed to help relieve temporary fatigue during daily life or after exercise.
In the quick-cook foods category, Nisshin Seifun Werunaga’s “Ma·Ma Microwave 2-Minute Chewy Fresh Pasta” series took an Excellence Hit Award. Sold as fresh pasta in microwave-safe pouches, the line is praised for its springy texture and the convenience of heating the sealed pouch in the microwave for two minutes. The series launched with two varieties — fettuccine and classic spaghetti — and the company later tapped Shohei Ohtani as its model.
An aT official said that amid high prices, Japan’s food industry is seeing stronger demand for products focused on time savings, convenience, and health/functionality.
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